Proud Italian Cook

Non-Traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage

March 12, 2013 by Marie 22 Comments

Traditional corned beef and cabbage is a slow boiled one pot meal, and although I like corned beef I’ve never been a big fan of the boiled vegetables in this dish which are usually potatoes and carrots. So today I’m sharing with you my fuss free, non-traditional corned beef and cabbage, just a little twist on the classic!

It’s no secret that I love to roast vegetables, so it was a no-brainer on roasting the cabbage in thick slices especially after I saw it done on Pinterest more than a few times. It’s very similar to roasting slabs of cauliflower which I’ve done in the past. Roasting the cabbage intensifies all the flavors, it becomes tender, perfectly caramelized and it gives you the ideal surface to top with your favorite ingredients.

This recipe was fuss free for me because I happened to pick up a fully cooked corned beef brisket at my local Trader Joe’s the other day after tasting a free sample. It was nice to just open up the package, slice it while it was still cold and then give it a quick warm up.

I used savoy cabbage because I love the crinkled leaves plus it gave me a little Italian addition, just be careful when you turn the slabs over during the roasting process, just take your time and use a nice wide spatula.

In a separate pan I roasted potato wedges and carrots to eat alongside it.

Spicy grainy mustard slathered on the surface of the cabbage gave a nice kick to the corned beef, Just grab a knife and fork and dig in!

Non-Traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage

Ingredients

1 medium head of savoy cabbage, cut into 1 inch slices
a few carrots
2 potatoes, cut into wedges
cooked and sliced corned beef
grainy mustard

Instructions

Drizzle a baking sheet with olive oil, place cabbage slices single layer on top, drizzle the cabbage with more olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in a 400 degree oven. Check after 15 to 20 minutes if golden on bottom carefully flip slices over and continue roasting until tender and golden on the other side.
Roast potatoes and carrots in a separate baking sheet with olive oil, salt and pepper.

22 Comments Filed Under: Meats, Vegetables Tagged: corned beef, roasted cabbage, roasted cabbage slices

Lasagnetti with Crumbled Sausage, Asparagus and Zucchini Coins

March 5, 2013 by Marie 21 Comments

I always gravitate towards the unique non traditional pasta shapes, when I see a shelf full of them I always have to grab a bag or two. My pantry is stocked with different shapes just waiting to be cooked up, so every now and then I will showcase one here on my blog.

Like these cute little lasagnetti which I recently found, they look like mini one inch square lasagne sheets. As far as what kind of sauce to serve with it, my first idea was to toss them into marinara and then dot the whole thing with fresh ricotta and a little romano, but I wanted something different this time and since fresh asparagus has been popping up all over in my area I used that as my inspiration to make this dish.

The combination of roasted zucchini coins, asparagus, medium spicy Italian sausage and sauteed grape tomatoes turned out to be the perfect flavor combination to grace my lasagnetti. Of course, any sturdy pasta shape would do, but if you’re interested my fellow Chicagoans, I got this pasta at Caputo’s.

If you’re looking for something a little different for your next dinner party I would suggest this dish, not only does it taste great it looks really nice spread out on a platter!

It’s fun to get out of your comfort zone every now and then!

Lasagnetti with Crumbled Sausage, Asparagus and Zucchini Coins

Ingredients

3 small yellow squash cut in ¼ inch slice
3 small zucchini cut in ¼ inch slice
1 lb. fresh asparagus cut diagonally
12 or more grape tomatoes cut in half
1 large shallot finely chopped
1 lb. Italian sausage, casings removed
½ cup each of white wine, chicken broth and pasta water
¼ cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. of cooked lasagnetti or any sturdy pasta, reserve ½ cup pasta water
1 cup of ricotta
fresh basil and grated romano for garnish

Instructions

Roast zucchini coins and asparagus on a baking sheet drizzled in olive oil at 425 until golden brown.
Saute the tomatoes in olive oil in a small skillet.
Brown sausage in a skillet with the chopped shallot and garlic cloves, my sausage is very lean so I add a little olive oil when browning. When sausage is cooked through add in the wine, broth, ¼ cup olive oil and pasta water, this will be the base for your sauce.
Toss everything into a large bowl coating the cooked pasta with the sauce, tossing with grated cheese, fresh snipped basil and salt and pepper to taste.
Place on a platter and dot with fresh ricotta and a drizzle more of olive oil if needed.

21 Comments Filed Under: Chicago, Pasta, Uncategorized Tagged: Caputo's Fresh Market, Italian sausage, lasagnetti, unique pasta shapes, zucchini coins

Bundt Pan Chicken and Winter Potato Salad

February 26, 2013 by Marie 25 Comments

I love beer can chicken, I make it throughout the summer all different ways on my grill, the meat always comes out moist and juicy and because it’s cooked vertically the bird get’s nice and crispy all the way around. I never attempted to make it inside my oven although I have seen it done.

I was dreaming of spring the other day and wishing it was warm enough to grill outside when I happened to come across bundt pan chicken on Pinterest, sort of the same concept without the beer and it’s made in your oven. I was inspired!

Perfect timing because Whole foods had a one day, half price sale on their organic chickens, so I picked up a few and dusted off my bundt pan which I haven’t used in, I can’t even remember how many years! I also had a bunch of herbs I needed to use up so I made an herby paste and rubbed it all over the outside of the chicken and underneath the skin.

While I was there I also picked up a package of their fingerling potatoes, the heirloom variety. You could place your potatoes right in the bundt pan along with the chicken, most of the pictures I saw showed it done that way but I like my potatoes really crispy so I decided to roast them separately and toss them into a salad.

It was sort of fun and to make it this way, using the bundt pan, although I had to reduce my oven temp from 450 to 400 because my smoke alarm kept going off but other than that it turned out very flavorful, crispy and juicy. I guess it will just have to do until spring gets here!

Bundt Pan Chicken and Winter Potato Salad

Ingredients

For the Paste
2 tablespoons each parsley, basil
1 tablespoon each rosemary and thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 garlic cloves
zest of 1 lemon
olive oil
For the Potato Salad
1 package of fingerling potatoes
1 bag of arugula
tomatoes, either roasted or sliced grape tomatoes
balsamic glaze and olive oil
1 chicken
bundt pan

Instructions

Make a paste by finely chopping your herbs, smashing your garlic, adding the lemon zest, salt and pepper to taste and enough olive oil drizzled in to make it loose
Loosen skin around the breast of the chicken then rub the paste under and all over the whole bird
Spray bundt pan with cooking spray and place bird on top
Place bundt pan on a foil lined baking sheet with rim to avoid any drips
Roast in a 400 degree oven for around 1 hour and 10 minutes or until meat thermometer reaches 165
For the potato salad, roast potatoes on a separate baking sheet drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper, around 30 minutes on top shelf, same oven temp.
Toss your arugula in a separate bowl with drizzled olive oil and balsamic glaze or a good aged balsamic vinegar. Add tomatoes and toss.
Place salad mixture onto a platter and scatter the crispy potatoes all around.